Well I play on PC and now with the nerf I just learned up the ring only gives an effect to players if they have <25% equip burden instead of the original <50%. So it is pretty much useless with heavy armor now :/

As it should be. The Dark Wood Grain Ring is a no-brainer on consoles because it allows you to have your cake and eat it, too. Staying under 50% with good gear is extremely easy at 40 endurance with either Havel's Ring or the Ring of Favour and Protection, so combined with one of those, it allows automatic fast movement and the best dodge in the game. There's no downside. Endurance gouge builds can do absolutely insane things with it, too, like having a full Havel's set ninja flipper. That's not fun, intelligent or balanced. If you want to wear heavy armour and move quickly, you should have to pay for it with stat investment and other pieces of gear that don't automatically render a whole weight class obsolete.

The metagame will be much, much better without the Dark Wood Grain Ring being such a no-brainer; for one thing, getting both speed and poise will be much more difficult.